Bitcoins????

[vontar]

I finally decided to learn a little about bitcoin this weekend.

 

So far, I learned I won't be a miner for bitcoin.

 

This video is pretty informative.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqnbtFHlOsA 

[tnguy]

Yep. When I first got into it, I did a little mining on my graphics card but it's been serious business for a couple of years now.

[btq96r]

I know a guy who lost quite a bit of money in the Bitcoin craze.  I really think it's not something that is sustainable in a global economy that is more or less run by central banking.  They don't want a currency they can't control, or more specifically manipulate, in the hands of the common folk.

[Dirtshooter]

The very scariest thing about this is that people throughout the world are so scared of the U.S. dollar that they will try something like this!!

[vontar]

it has went from like 800 down to 220 since last summer. 

 

I don't believe it is anything that will actually last.

 

But then again, I didn't trust ebay or paypal when they first came out.  I still consider ebay a risk dealing with people.  I really check feed back before I buy.

Edited February 1, 2015 by vontar

[Sam1]

double tap 

Edited February 1, 2015 by Sam1

[Sam1]

As I said last year, it's just magic internet money and the carpet ride is about over.  People are trying to branch off of it and make it into something that it's not (like the Winklevoss twins trading it on the stock market now), and that's all that is keeping it breathing.

 

I cashed out a ways back and bought a crap load of actual silver with it when the metal dealers started accepting bitcoin, I bet they're kicking themselves in the butt right about now.

 

Anyone wanna buy some gear? lol

[btq96r]

But then again, I didn't trust ebay or paypal when they first came out.  I still consider ebay a risk dealing with people.  I really check feed back before I buy.

 

That's not an apt comparison.  eBay and PayPal are just services that use established currencies via traditional means such as bank drafts and credit/debit card transactions.

 

Bitcoin on the other hand is a stand alone currency, guaranteed by no nation and without guidance by a monetary policy from any central bank.  With nothing behind it, it's doomed to fail.

Edited February 1, 2015 by btq96r

[Sam1]

With nothing behind it, it's doomed to fail.

 

It is backed by the faith of random internet people, just like Ron Paul.

[btq96r]

It is backed by the faith of random internet people, just like Ron Paul.

While not the official definition of nothing, it's just as good.

[Garufa]

Are Bitcoins still a thing?

[Dustbuster]

Google mark Karpeles if u even think about getting into Bitcoin. Right now it's not very safe and sound.

[Chucktshoes]

Google mark Karpeles if u even think about getting into Bitcoin. Right now it's not very safe and sound.

Neither are the US Dollar or the Euro.

[Dustbuster]

Agreed but a dollar in hand is better than someone telling you you have "virtual" money or the machine that has your virtual money got hacked and it's all gone. Physically. Edited February 1, 2015 by Dustbuster

[FUJIMO]

Agreed but a dollar in hand is better than someone telling you you have "virtual" money or the machine that has your virtual money got hacked and it's all gone. Physically.

That sounds like a bank !
Or the stock market !

[Dustbuster]

Pretty much... My Grandpa used to use maxwell house savings and loan. Load the coffee cans w cash and bury em, borrow when u need to, repay as needed. No suits or commissions. Totally safe as long as they don't change currency. Simplicity at best

[vontar]

Pretty much... My Grandpa used to use maxwell house savings and loan. Load the coffee cans w cash and bury em, borrow when u need to, repay as needed. No suits or commissions. Totally safe as long as they don't change currency. Simplicity at best

As a kid, I grew up around older generations that went though the great depression.  They had no trust in banks.  One of them carried 2 wallets one with just a couple bucks, the other was wired into his overalls.

 

One of them ask my uncle to take him to Jellico.  while in Jellico, he said, lets go to the Ford lot and look around.  He found a Red Ford ranger, ask the sales me how much, they worked out a price and he was about 500 short of paying cash on the spot for it.

If ever saw the man, you wouldn't think he had a dime to his name or a care in the world.

[NextExit]

FWIW;

http://www.coindesk.com/research-11-million-lost-bitcoin-scams-since-2009/

[tnguy]

Are Bitcoins still a thing?

 

Currently hanging out around the 220s which as mentioned earlier, is quite far down from the all-time-high but still pretty impressive compared to two years ago. There has been some fairly decent good news recently so it's far from dead.

[tnguy]

Pretty much... My Grandpa used to use maxwell house savings and loan. Load the coffee cans w cash and bury em, borrow when u need to, repay as needed. No suits or commissions. Totally safe as long as they don't change currency. Simplicity at best

 

Good when the dollar is backed by something and they're not inflating things shamelessly (shadowstats puts the real value of inflation somewhere around 10% currently)

 

You'd probably be better off doing this with PMs but they're a bit inflated at the moment as well.

 

Just wait until BRIC drop the dollar completely. It will really hit the fan then.

Edited February 1, 2015 by tnguy

[tnguy]

FWIW;

http://www.coindesk.com/research-11-million-lost-bitcoin-scams-since-2009/

 

Scammers gonna scam. 

[Sam1]

There has been some fairly decent good news recently so it's far from dead.

 

The only reason that it is still even at $220 is the people that invested a ton of money and resources into this are in too far over their head to get out so they're hoping to revive it a bit so they can dump it on someone else.

[tnguy]

The only reason that it is still even at $220 is the people that invested a ton of money and resources into this are in too far over their head to get out so they're hoping to revive it a bit so they can dump it on someone else.

 

If you hold Bitcoins, the way to move the price up is to put dollars in. Which means you now have more bitcoins. Would seem like an odd way to get rid of bitcoins.

 

What does appear to have been happening recently is manipulators have got into the market, deliberately moving the market to cause others to buy/sell then making money off of the momentum that causes. This means it's currently hard to tell what the true price should be and whether it's a good time to invest or get out. Personally, I think somewhere around 100 is probably fair at this stage of development but if it's successful, it should go much higher. If it fails, it will go to 0 of course. 

 

Also something to be borne in mind is that with the rise in price, the makeup of the miners changed. Before, many were mining and keeping the mined bitcoins for themselves. With the rise in price, commercial interests got involved and more of the mined coins were sold directly for dollars. This has an effect on depressing the price. With the fall in price, many of these miners are seeing their profits squashed. There is an equilibrium to be found and we're a ways from that yet.

Edited February 1, 2015 by tnguy

[Sam1]

Can spin it any way you want to, but it's nothing more than magic internet money.  I do applaud the effort that people put into giving this stuff legitimacy though.

[tnguy]

Sure. But we can play that "nothing more than" game for a lot of stuff. Even gold is nothing more than a shiny mineral dug from the ground whose market value far exceeds that suggested by its practical uses.